when it comes to disappointing God…

so you think you can’t share your testimony without being a hypocrite…?

so you think the guilt you feel is from God…?

i want to share something with you that i learned earlier this week, and it may just change the way you think. it changed the way i think anyways. as i stood in the doorway of a co-worker i often have spiritual conversations with, he told me about a book he just finished reading – “52 Lies Heard In Church Every Sunday” by Steve McVey.

rather than try to explain it in my own words, i’m going to write out the conversation we had (actually, i let him do most of the talking).

me:i guess i just feel like i always let God down. like He expects more of me, but i’m just a disappointment…

him:is that what you think? you think your shortcomings, your failures, your sin is a disappointment to God…?

me:well… isn’t it though…?

him:heather, you could never disappoint God, regardless of what you do or say. because in order to disappoint God means you caught Him off guard and did something He didn’t think you would do. heather, He knows exactly what you’re going to do before it’s ever a thought in your mind! see, before you were ever born He knew ever choice you would ever make; He knew every road you would walk down; He knew it all! you absolutely cannot disappoint God!

me:but doesn’t He expect things of us…? doesn’t He expect us to try to be the best we can be…?

him:sure, He desires us to grow in grace and mirror the life of Christ, but when we fall short He doesn’t look at you and say: “you idiot! i expected more from you! I’m so disappointed in you right now!” no… He knew what the outcome of that situation would be from the beginning, so when you fall short He’s not caught off guard or surprised in any way.

me:what you’re saying makes sense… i’ve just had a whole different way of thinking about it in the past than this…

him:let me give you an example. let’s say you’re my wife and i asked you to go back to college and pursue a degree and you agreed to do it. if, halfway through the degree, you decided to quit and approached me one afternoon to tell me you dropped out of school, would i be disappointed in you? sure i would be. BUT, let’s look at it from another perspective. if i asked you to go back to college and pursue a degree and you agreed to do it, but told me there was a possibility you would never finish and graduate. if, halfway through the degree, you did indeed drop out of college, would i be disappointed in you? no i wouldn’t, because i knew ahead of time that you weren’t sure you were going to follow through with it to the end. see, God already knows the end from the beginning, so when you say you’re gonna do something (or not do something) and don’t follow through, He already knew that’s how it was going to end so He’s not surprised; and, therefore, He’s not disappointed.

me:hm. that’s simple, but yet deep at the same time…

him:just know that you could never disappoint God in any way. He knows everything about you and every choice you will ever make. He knows every thought that will run through your mind, every word that will exit your mouth, and every sin you will ever commit. and still He loves you and thinks you’re awesome. and that guilt you feel when you fall short? it’s not from the Holy Spirit… it’s from a spirit… but not the Holy one. you’re not a disappointment – never have been or ever will be in the eyes of God. your His.

i’ve been learning oceans of stuff lately, and i’m thankful for Christian co-workers who are willing to take time out of their busy schedule to help me in my (ever-struggling) Christian walk.

i’m just curious what your thoughts are on the above conversation…

do you think our sin disappoints God, or do you agree with my co-worker…?has anyone read the book “52 Lies Heard In Church Every Sunday”…? if yes, did you recommend it?

Thank you for sharing this encouragement from your co-worker. The fact that God sees our entire lives in an instant suggests to me that He chooses to walk alongside us because of what He sees and loves in us, not because of our sins and mistakes – they have been dealt with already.

Am I disappointed when one of my children messes up? I may wish that they wouldn’t but I expect them to make mistakes and get things badly wrong sometimes. I forgive them and I support them because I love them and because I know that it is part of the learning and growing process. And when I look at my three older children who have left home and who have grown in so many ways then my heart is touched with pride.

I don’t think you disappoint God Heather Joy. I believe that God is proud of you.

Heather We all make choices right or wrong, thats how we learn. Yes in our hearts we may know this isnt what we were taught to do. Well I wasnt taught that any of the stuff you and the Koontz’s and others were taught is wrong. See I wasnt a chirstian growing up untill Brian thank God loved me enough to ask me to church and helped get me saved. Im so glad I did. I love God and want to walk more in his footsteps, but some things I believe like wearing pants, movies, drinking, and dancing are all self convictions. I DO believe from what I read they drank in the bible and also danced. What we have been taught is yes they did but not like we think. I do believe certain people twist the words to fit what they want it to mean. More like this is what you should/are going to do. We are human we make our own choices. I dont believe that makes us love God any less. I just believe more people hide what they do and thats not right. We are who we are and we shouldnt judge anyone on thier choices thats for God, but as your co worker said he already new what we choose. I think you Heather could never dissapoint God or anyone, he loves us all. I think we only dissapoint those who want us to be what they think is Godly. I know some of this may not make sense but I was trying to write what was going through my head. In my words Id rather be me and not be fake than go to church or be around family and say amen and pretend I dont sin like some of the people I know. SIn is Sin and there is no degree in Gods eyes just remember that.

God is holy. That is the first thing. God is good. That is the second thing. God is love. That is the third thing. Is the first better than the second or third? No. None of our Father’s attributes are greater than another, for His attributes are infinite. That being said, we are finite. We can’t comprehend Him in His fulness. Therefore, God reveals Himself in ways that enable us to grasp a portion of His holiness, goodness, love, etc.

So, I said all that to say that God is surely capable of disappointment, for the Old Testament contains several examples. The New Testament speaks of potentially grieving the Holy Spirit (God) with our actions. But because the holiness of God demands our perfection, the wisdom and love of God provided a solution – Jesus.

Of Jesus the Father said, “this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Speaking of us, the Bible says, “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (Col. 3:3). If we are hid in Christ, the Father sees Jesus when He looks at us. If not for Jesus, God would be disappointed, for we are incapable of righteousness. But because of Jesus, God is “well pleased.” This is why we should love and serve Him with reverential fear, for only because of His grace, manifested in Jesus, can we rest assured that we are accepted and approved, regardless how we may disappoint ourselves.

I don’t completely understand, but I accept it by faith. I may, you may disappoint, but He knew what He was getting when He purchased us. No, He can’t be surprised. However, as Paul would say, because of His love, because of Jesus, “I am constrained” to live in a way that would not disappoint – not out of guilt or fear, but out of a thankful heart. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus! Even when I mess up badly, all He says is “what sin?”

I agree with Mr. Baker. We are children of God by faith in Christ the moment we are born again, but that doesn’t mean that He is pleased with everything we do and that does not mean that I am in fellowship with Him no matter how I act. It is the same in a human father-child relationship, though on a far less perfect basis. Growing up, when I disobeyed my father, I was still his son but I wasn’t pleasing to Him and we didn’t have proper fellowship. We see this in the account of the Prodigal Son. The father continued to love his son even when he was in the hog pen and the relationship was unbroken, but the fellowship wasn’t restored until the son repented and returned to the father’s arms. In his first Epistle John says there are two things that keep the believer in fellowship with the Father: walking in the light (obedience) and confession of sins. God isn’t “mad” at His children in any frail human sense when we sin, but He can definitely be displeased and the onus is on us to stay in sweet fellowship by honoring and obeying Him and acknowledging our sins before Him rather than hiding them and excusing them.

I think that it is a matter of definition. You can be disappointed in someone and yet not surprised at their actions. I often disappoint myself. We often grieve God. Matthew is FULL of Jesus’ closest and most beloved (disciples ) constantly disappointing Him. God often makes things plain and simple. Sometimes we complicate it. Sometimes we miss it. Peter was probably the most egregous perp. With every success he had he seemed to let the Lord down quickly after.

Rebekah and I went to a parent teacher conference a month ago where 1 of his teacher said that our son was being silly and occasionally disruptive. We assured her that we would work on him and urged her to put a few words on page of his daily planner regarding his behavior. Yesterday he got a bad report in the book. I wasn’t angry. I was disappointed.

You have no idea the perfect timing of reading this post. Every time I do something sinful, I beat myself thinking how disappointed God is on me and how, once more, I’ve made a mistake. and I feel like I’m the lowest of the lowest. It is so comforting to know that we have a Father that loves us so much regardless of our stupidity.

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